YaST/Development/New Control Center/Ideas From Mailinglist

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Ideas from the Mailing List

I have collected the ideas and proposals form the discussion initiated by this mail http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse/2007-11/msg02390.html

Please feel free to add items or rearrange the sections.

Wording

• high-level roles: samba -> windows compatible file server
• don't change from well-established Unix terminology to windows jargon
• tag modules with wordings known form other operating systems
• Avoid acronyms in the modules titles (define exceptions)
• newbie level menu with common, non computer specific wording
• understandable words: display (screen, monitor), install/uninstall programs etc.

Documentation and Help

• experts explanation button with technical info
• docu too technical for user without expertise in the particular field
• live full text search field (define properties)
• docu organized in sections (description, tutorial, details, man)
• Personal knowledge base to customize and make notes in YaST (copy them to new system or wiki)
• popup with description when moving mouse over icon (tooltips)
• scarceness of help with some modules is disconcerting
• easy feedback mechanism
• links to documentation (networking docu should be local)
• useful tooltips and a paragraph for every module (use rpm descriptions)
• show links to related item, related tools, docu, history of changes, personal notes, wiki
• small faq that highlight appropriate modules
• "tell me more" button for help on modules
• openSUSE reference book on the appropriate topic that a certain module is about
• help tip on mouse hover or help panel
• tutorial mode: give a list of most commonly used tasks
• provide a side-bar type "lookup" dictionary if needed

Layout

• "Gnome way of doing things" is a really bad idea... really bad.
• web base hast (no javascript)
• don't show modules that configure non existing hardware
• user interface as a web page (like routers have) use css and lat users rearrange menus
• list/details view of the icons
• theme support
• no different layouts from on gui to the next
• make layout configurable
• moving or enlarging icons might confuse
• not more than 7 objects in any list
• no popups for status (e.g. software install part of Yast), but embedded status window like other configuration modules

Grouping and Icon Placement

• move network card in hardware section
• Own icons for graphics tablets and mouse
• separate sax modules for mouse keyboard display and tablet
• Hide seldom used configuration modules
• consolidate modules with similar tasks into one contra having somewhat redundant entries might be handy.
• define max number of children per node
• don't use tree structure but lattice
• main sections as tabs
• not more than three levels in a menu
• Tabbing
• modules placed in more then one category if needed
• allow users to customize navigation
• standard navigation way needed to use descriptions of howtos
• let the user move most used modules vie kmenu editor to his menu
• grayout uninstalled hardware but allow to start
• grayout and clickable is confusing
• merge section and only show icons for items installed
• directed graph presents a tree with icons multiply categorized
• don't show icons for hardware that is not in the system ("add hardware" that lists all possibilities) (same for services)
• favorites view
• Different categories: "General Networking" and "Large/Commercial Site Networking"
• network devices as node under hardware
• YaST module that manages YaST modules: adding removing enabling disabling modules
• chance to rearrange the items using my criteria
• tag clouds
• tags but no tag cloud
• don't move icons
• yastcc has to be able to deal with zillions of modules (eg. from hardware vendors)

Task Orientation

• need some way to guide a novice user
• help novice user to choose needed software
• Combine firewall and apparmor-profile-generator to a network-security module
• Split "one-time-config-modules" (like printer-config) from needed-every-day-config-modules (like firewall-config)

Desktop Integration

• YaST for System config and additionally a "YaDT" for Desktop config
• Use kde4's systemsettings as new YaST2cc and port .desktop files
• YaST is for system config not for user's config
• don't mix user's desktop settings with system settings
• border between system config and users config
• solution needs to be desktop neutral => freedesktop
• a common interface (not two different styles for kde and gnome)
• qt, gtk, ncurses with same functionality, behavior and look.
• don't group modules in a control center, move modules where the user expects/needs them
• put modules to (gnome/kde) desktop settings menu
• move modules to kde system settings

General Statements and Miscellaneous

• no change needed
• don't change anything
• work on something else
• YaST must be easy accessible and non dangerous
• YaST architecture should be plugable to be easily extendable by the community
• decide who the YaST CC is for: user or admin experts
• don't ask an groups for ideas because there are no absolute beginners
• wizard only for education, "normal" config when user is educated
• One-click-configure
• rule: 'every hardware device should have an entry in the hardware section' [and it may have other entries elsewhere]
• rule: 'all keywords and tags must be listed at the end of the module summary'
• Let the community add keywords
• wrong question: "how easily can the user find what he/she wants within yast2-control-center" => "how easily can the user find what he/she wants within the Desktop?"
• Don't forget text mode!
• button "I'm a beginner". tell the beginning user that some system setting can break his system
• While installation a list of modules and actual setup is shown, ycc should this list too
• every module writes a short summary of the setup to the disk. when ycc finds no summary is shows a description of the module
• main menu with beginner/expert/master of the universe
• Show the commandline equivalents for the icons to learn the command
• config of YaST CC like konqueror (double click or single click to start module)
• different language for admin tasks
• easy bug reporting: select package and fill in bug reports with package infos
• maybe legal issues with web version of YaST

Module Wishes

• module that creates modules
• openvpn server and client module
• integration of firewall setup config for all YaST server modules
• module to configure NoMachine NX

About YaST, openSUSE and the Universe

• web based YaST access
• faster YaST especially downloading updates
• screen magnification while installation
• abort button should really work
• mark broken packages in the repo
• too many repos and software hard to find
• repo refresh takes too long
• software management needs improvement
• Client/Server via vnc
• Client/Server: connect to remote hosts for configuration